


Big Night Out

by ZanzaFlux



Series: Angelic Life [5]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Comedy, Comedy is hard, Drama, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-23 11:50:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,204
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14933721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZanzaFlux/pseuds/ZanzaFlux
Summary: All Abel wanted to do was grab a couple of drinks and relax for the night.  One act of kindness turns his night upside down.





	Big Night Out

**Author's Note:**

> This story is based on the character Abel Angel created by @the-vampire-inside-me on tumblr. Check their work out. It's pretty cool!

It was a warm, quiet night in Toon Town. Most of its residence were either safe at home, hanging out at bars, or perusing the various night clubs scattered about town. In other words, there were very few toons roaming the streets.

Abel loved nights like this. He could walk the streets alone and not be bothered by anyone. After hectic days of pulling jobs, he needed some time to himself. So here he was, heading to his favorite bar to get a drink or three and relax. Nothing could spoil a beautiful night like this…

Then he heard a scream. The toon angel grumbled. He really wanted to ignore this. Maybe someone else will come along and help whoever was in trouble. All Abel had to do was keep walking. Then he heard the scream again as well as cackling. ‘ _Great, just great_.’ He thought as he rushed of into the direction of the screams.

Abel reached into his holster and pulled out his gun as he made his way quietly down the block. As he approached the corner, he could hear laughing and a woman crying. The angel took a few deep breaths before peaking around the corner. He frowned at what he saw.

Three weasels in cheep, ill fitting suits with Billy clubs had what looked like a hippo in a off white cocktail dress pinned up against the wall. The poor gal was crying her eyes out and clutching at the pearls around her thick neck.

“C’mon lady, you’s makin' this harda than it hasta be!” a thug with a nasally voice said.

“Jus’ give us your money and jewels and y'all be fine!” the other thug spat out.

The last of the weasels just stood there and cackled as he threatened the hippo with his club. She screamed when he swung at her and this made the others laugh as well.

The toon angel growled softly. He needed to put a stop to this before someone got hurt.

‘Chuckles’ was so busy laughing, he didn’t notice Abel walk up behind him until he felt the muzzle of a gun pressed against the back of his head. All laughter stopped then. The other two turned towards their partner in crime when he got quiet. Both thugs jumped at the sight of a very large gun pointed at their friend's head.

“Alight boys, fun's over.” The weasels winced at the loud click the angel's gun made. “The lady doesn’t want to give you her hard earned things. So why don’t you run home before I fill your friend full of holes.”

The weasels were looking at each other wide eyed and shaking like leaves in the wind. They seemed to be debating on whether they should stay or go so Abel made the decision for them. He let off one shot into the air. The sudden sound made the trio scream and they scattered in different directions.

“Heh amateurs.” Abel whispered under his breath as he holstered his gun. He made sure the thugs were gone before turning to the woman he saved. She was staring down at him with tears in her eyes. Standing this close, he didn’t realize how big she really was. The gal was very…curvy and that's putting it mildly. Not only that but she had to be seven feet tall! She practically towered over him. It took everything he had not to back away from her.

“Thank you! Thank you so much!” she pressed her relatively small hands together against her ample chest. “I’m so lucky you came along!”

Abel gave her a shaky smile. “No problem miss. Uh, I was happy to he-uck!"

Before he knew what was happening, the hippo woman snatched him up and had him in a bone crushing hug! “My hero!” she shouted in his ear. He actually thought he could hear the sounds of bones cracking!

Abel tried to yell out but he was being muffled by having his head pressed into her ample cleavage. Under normal circumstances he didn’t mind this position but it was getting harder and harder to breathe! Abel could feel himself sinking into her squishy body. He was starting to panic! All he could do was flap his wings and pray that his captor got the point.

“Huh?” The hippo blinked as feathers went flying from his frantic flapping. The woman blushed when she realized what she was doing. “Oh OH! I'm so sorry!” Abel was set back on the ground. He was shaking, gulping in air, and his feathers were somewhat ruffled from the traumatic experience. “Oh shoot, I didn’t mean to- I'm so sorry mister…?”

Abel shot her a hot glare as he tried to straighten out his clothes. He didn't like strangers hugging him on a good day. He swore this woman tried to kill him just now. Still, he suppose she didn’t mean it. Just got excited, he guessed.

“M’name’s Abel ma'am.” He eyed her wearily. Her tiny black eyes were practically sparkling. If she was going to make another grab for him, he wanted to be ready. Instead, she waved her hand at him.

“Aww, quit with that ma'am stuff! I'm not that old.” She chuckled. “My name's Ella. Thank you again for coming to my rescue!”

“Uh, you’re welcome.” Abel made sure his gun was secure before taking a step back. “Well, you have a G'night Ella.” He began to walk away. The angel didn’t get very far when he heard the clicking of heels on the pavement behind him. Abel hunched his shoulders, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and started walking a little faster. Damn it if she was able to keep pace with him.

“Abel! Abel wait!” The toon angel winced slightly. She sure was loud. If she kept yelling like that, everyone in the neighborhood would know his name. He grumbled and turned abruptly. “What?!”

Ella stood there with a sheepish grin on her wide mouth. It was then that Abel noticed the small bit of lipstick drawn in the middle of her lips, the dusting of blush on her cheeks and her hair done up in a bun. It looks like she was on her way to a party or something.

“Hey, are you busy tonight?” Abel just stared at her. He barely knew this gal and she was trying to asking him out? “Ella, it's late. Why dontcha head on home.” He watched with some dismay as she shook her large head.

“C'mon, I'm not an old lady! The night is young and I was heading to a club when those weasels caught me.” All of a sudden a thoughtful expression crossed her features and Abel didn’t like it. He didn’t like it one bit. “I could really use an escort for the night…”

“No.” Abel deadpanned. It was quite amusing to see Ella's wide mouth drop open. Bet she wasn’t expecting him to reject her so quickly.

“But-but it'll be fun! I promise! We can order a few drinks and dance the night away. Please?” She pressed her hands together and tried to hit him with the doe eyes. It wasn’t working.

“No thanks. I don’t dance and I can get my own drinks.” He crossed his arms over his chest and looked less than amused. “Find someone else to go with you.”

“I don’t have anyone to go with me right now. Besides, you're here!” Her face lit up. “You did such a great job of saving me tonight. I have to repay you, somehow.” She swayed on her feet and batted her long eye lashed at him. Oh boy, this gal was really pouring on the charm.

Abel just rolled his eyes. “No.” Ella's face went from cheery to straight up serious in three seconds flat. It was quite impressive.

“Look, I'll pay you.” The hippo reached into her bosom and pulled out a wad of cash. Abel's eye twitched. ‘ _That's where she hides her money?_ ’ he thought. He supposed there could have been worse places. That thought sent a shudder up his spine.

“I’ve been wanting to check out The Stork's Club for years. I finally earned an invite!” She reached into her cleavage again and pulled out a small white card with a stork's head embossed in gold on the cover. She showed it to him. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I don’t want to miss it. Please Abel?”

Abel stroked his chin in thought. ‘ _The Stork's Club? That club is hellava hard to get into. How in the heck did SHE get an invitation?’_ He shook his head. It didn’t matter. This would be his chance to get in and check the place out. If he played his cards right, his night might not be a total loss.

“Hmm alright Ella, I'll escort you to the club. You're paying for the drinks, got it?” The large hippo woman squealed and clapped her hands excitedly. The angel grimaced slightly. She began to jump up and down. Abel could feel the ground shake under his feet. She opened her arms and tried to hug him again, but he was ready for her and jumped out of the way. “One more thing: No hugging!”

Ella giggled nervously and backed away. Abel stuffed his hands in his pockets and lead the way deeper into town. Calling for a taxi was out of the question because, well, Ella wouldn’t fit… Ah well, the big gal didn’t seem to mind walking anyway. He just wish she wouldn’t talk so much. If she wasn’t telling him about herself, she kept asking him questions that he had no desire answer. At some point he kinda tuned her out and just nodded his head every once and awhile.

* * *

 

After fifteen minutes of walking and they finally made their way to The Stork's Club. The building was tall and dark on the outside. There were ornate double doors of dark wood with gold trim and handles being guarded by two storks in white suits out front. They checked for invites before letting people in. Speaking of people, it looked like a very rich crowd. It made him wonder even more how Ella got an invite to a place like this.

They walked up to the front door and Abel could already tell the doormen were judging them. It made his feathers bristle but Ella seemed oblivious to it. She walked right up to them and before they could say anything, she whipped out her invite and shoved it in their faces. Abel couldn’t tell if they were more shocked that she had an invite or that she pulled it out of her ample bosom. The storks gave each other a look before opening the doors for her. One of the doormen gave Abel a questioning glare.

“He's with me.” Ella pointed towards the door. “Um Abel? Why don’t you go first.” He thought that was a little odd but he did as she asked. He walked past her but when he turned back, he finally understood why she wanted him to go first.

Ella had to turn sideways to squeeze through the doorway. It seems the doors weren’t made for someone of her…stature. It took a few tries but she finally shimmied through. She had a slight blush dusting her cheeks as she fixed her dress. “Okay! Let’s go have some fun!” She sounded a little too cheery to his ears but he didn’t call her out on it.

They walked down a long hallway to get to the main area. As they got closer, they could hear a band playing. The music was upbeat and they could feel it thumping as they reached the entryway of the club. The inside was huge. The walls were white with gold trip and embossed with the gold stork emblem. A big band was playing on a raised stage in the back of club.

The club was alive with the hustle and bustle of toons of all types mingling with one another. The wait staff (which consisted of storks as well) flittered here and there placing drinks on tables and taking orders. Some of the patrons took to a section of the floor designated for dancing. All in all, the club was surprisingly energetic to be full of rich people.

Abel heard a squeal from behind him and he knew Ella was getting excited. The poor hippo girl was bouncing from foot to foot and clapping her hands. She looked like she was going to explode. Before he could say something to calm her down, a waiter came up to them.

“How may I be of service?” the stork said with an uppity attitude.

“Table for two, please!” Ella shouted. Abel didn’t miss the way he looked her up and down. He turned his bill up before telling them to follow him. The angel frowned at the treatment but his companion seemed to pay it no mind. She seemed to be determined to have fun, no matter what.

The waiter lead them to a table near the back. He pulled out a chair for Abel, then pulled one out for Ella. The angel watched nervously as the hippo sat down in the relatively small chair. The seat creaked and bent slightly at the legs, but it managed not to break. Abel released a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Apparently, he wasn’t the only one. Ella had a shaky smile on her face.

“Would either of you care for something to drink?”

“Yeah, bring me a scotch on the rocks.” Abel leaned back in the chair and relaxed. He pulled out a cigar from his inner pocket and lit it. He brought it to his lips, took a long drag, and blew out a cloud of smoke towards the waiter. The stork frowned but knew better than to say anything.

“Um, you can bring me a gin and tonic, please.” Ella kept looking around so she was slightly distracted by the energy in the room.

The stork took their order then walked away.

“Oh gosh! Isn't this place great!” Abel didn’t think her smile could get any wider. “I can’t wait to hit that dancefloor!”

“Well, let’s get a few drinks in us first before you do that.” Abel noticed all the fat wallets hanging out of the back pockets of rich men just waiting to be nicked. He'd figured he'd wait until Ella hit the dancefloor to make his move. She would be distracted and so would everyone else.

After ten minutes, their drinks came. The scotch was nice and smooth, just how he liked it. Ella seemed to be enjoying her drink as well. Abel managed to order two more before he was good and buzzed. Ella was itching to get on the dancefloor when a particular bouncy number started to play.

“Abel, wanna dance with me?”

“Nah darlin’. You go on ahead. I'm not much of a dancer.” Ella didn’t try to push him. She got up and maneuvered her way through the other tables. Abel's lips twitched around his cigar as he watched her rather large…hind end bump the tables as she walked by. This place really isn't set up for a person her size.

“Well, time to get to work.” The toon angel slid out of his chair, stuffed his hands in his pocket, and started casing the joint. Every once and awhile he would look towards the dancefloor to see Ella pulling some poor shmuck into a dance with her. More people were watching her then paying attention to him and that's just what he wanted.

The angel managed to weave through the crowds. Smoke from his cigar trailed and mingled with the smoke coming from the thin cigarettes that the rich liked to puff on because it was fashionable. One by one Abel managed to pluck wallets from back pockets and unattended purses. This place was like a thief’s paradise! He stuffed them in his inner vest pocket where he will go through them later. Screams from the dancefloor let him know that Ella was having the time of her life. Abel passed by a few couples who were snickering at the hippo's antics. They kept making remarks about her weight or how they could feel the floor shaking under their feet. He was didn’t like the way they were talking about her so he didn’t feel bad about stealing from the snobs.

Everything was going fine until a crash from the dancefloor caused the band to stop playing. Abel stopped what he was doing and headed for the dancefloor. He moved through the crowd to see what was going on. It was Ella! She was trying to help her unfortunate dance partner up off the floor.

“Oh no, I'm so sorry! Here, let me help you up.” Ella reached down to help the fella up, but she bumped another couple with her behind and sent the poor cats flyin'! She turned too quickly to see what happened and actually hip checked the guy she was trying to help up. The poor toon was knocked out cold.

“Oh oh no, I'm so sorry!” Ella covered her mouth with her hands and started to back up. She accidentally bumped into a group of dancers that went down like dominoes. “Oh shoot! I'm sorry!”

While chaos was erupting on the dancefloor, the people on the sidelines were laughing. Some were doubled over while others had tears in their eyes. Watching the wait staff rush out there to try to clean up the mess just made the situation even more funny. Ella was trying to get out of their was, but either stepped on their feet or knocked them over as well.

Things were getting worse the longer it went on. The staff was starting to yell at the hippo so Abel decided it was time for them to leave. While the storks helped the other patrons off the floor, he rushed in and took Ella by the hand.

“Time to go darlin'!” She let him pull her through the crowd (some jumped out of her way for fear of getting run over.) and lead her to the exit. They made it out of the club with her only getting stuck in the doorway for a few seconds. They walked away as quickly as they could. Ella could still hear the laughter even outside. It made her ears droop.

After ten minutes of fast walking, Abel started to slow down. It was then he noticed how quiet Ella got. He looked up at her and saw how dejected she looked. Her ears were pinned back and she was staring at the ground. It was strange to see her looking so…sad. He felt he needed to say something.

“Soooo, what happened back there?” Ella sighed and shook her head.

“I…was created to be the comic relief.” Abel gave her a confused look so she elaborated. “Y’know, a fat character who's big and clumsy. I bumble through things and mess stuff up…like this evening. I was created to be laughed at.”

Abel winced slightly at the bitterness in her voice.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love my job! It pays the bills…but for one night, I wanted to go some place nice. Maybe have a few drinks and dance the night away without my clumsiness getting in the way. Hah, like that would ever happen.”

“Ella.” Abel really felt bad for her. He had no idea what it was like to be laughed at for a living.

“For just one night, I didn’t want to make people laugh.” She looked down at him with a sad smile on her face. “I’m sorry I ruined the night for you too.”

Abel scratched the back of his head and chuckled. “You don't have to apologize. Believe me, my night was far from ruined.”

Ella wasn’t sure what he was talking about but she was glad he wasn’t mad at her. “Well anyway, I guess the night is over. Do you think you can walk me home?”

Abel frowned slightly around his cigar. He really didn’t want to end the night like this. Even though she dragged him along, he had a good time. In his opinion, she didn’t go to the right place. Maybe he could fix that.

“Tell ya what Ella, let’s make one more stop, then I'll take ya home. Alright?” Ella looked a little unsure but she agreed to it.

* * *

 

The hippo followed the angel to a more seedier part of town.

“Um Abel? Where are you taking me?” her voice wavered a bit. Some of the nearby buildings were worn down and windows boarded up. There was garbage strewn on the ground and less than savory toons roaming the streets. It was making her very nervous.

“Trust me darlin’. We'll be fine. We're almost there.” Ella looked a little skeptical but she continued to follow him. Within ten minutes they approached a row of buildings that looked like a bunch of store fronts. There was one in particular that stood out. It had a flashing sign in the darkened window. There were words written in cursive that read “ ** _BIG BEAR'S_** ”

“Abel, is this another bar?” She placed her hands on her hips and smirked at him. “Didn’t have enough to drink at the other place?”

Abel chuckled. “This is more than just a bar. Trust me.” He kept walking towards the door. There was a gorilla in a dark blue suit standing at the door. He looked mean and it made Ella nervous. She was surprised when Abel walked right up to him. At first the gorilla scowled at the angel until he got a good look at him, then a huge grin spread across his face. “Abel, issat you?”

The toon angel smiled. “Yeah Bruno, it's me.” He reached out and shook the gorilla’s massive hand.

“It's been awhile! Good ta see ya again.” Bruno looked passed Abel to see Ella standing a few feet behind him. “Heh, you brought a date this time?” Ella gasped and Abel just chuckled.

“She’s just a friend Bruno.” The hippo gave him a strange look. “This is her first time at Big Bear's.”

The bouncer's face seemed to light up. “Oh really? Well, if that's the case-“ he reached over and opened the door. “head on in.” Abel thanked him and entered the club with Ella following close behind. As she passed Bruno, he said, “I hope ya enjoy yourself, little lady.” Ella giggled. She's never been called a ‘little lady' before.

Right away, Ella noticed that she didn’t have to duck or walk sideways to get through the door. She was pleasantly surprised by this. She could also hear jazz music playing up ahead. It made her ears swivel and bounce. Ella followed Abel down a short hallway until they came to the main area.

The hallway opened up into a large room. It's dark with most of the light coming from candles lit on the tables, a few lights near the bar, and a spotlight on the small stage at the front of the room.

Ella looked around and could see toons of all shapes and sizes sitting at the candle lit tables. They were as small as mice, dogs, and cats to creatures her size like lions, elephants, and even a few giraffes. Ella couldn’t believe it. She had never been around this many toon even close to her own size before. No one even noticed her arrival. It felt kinda nice not to be stared at for a change.

“Hey Ella, over here.” She was so busy looking around the room, she didn't notice that Abel had found them a table. Ella made her way to him and noticed even the chairs were large enough to accommodate her. She sat down without fear of the seat legs bending under her weight. It was a nice change of pace from the other place.

Ella attention was brought back to the band. It was pretty small compared to the Stork's Club's big band, but something about their sound drew her in. There was an alligator strumming a bass fiddle, a lion on drums, a wolf on the saxophone, twin cats with violins, and a very large bear playing the piano. The bear in particular caught her attention because he was the only one in the band that was wearing a red zoot suit complete with a white ostrich feather sticking out of his wide brim hat hat. He made for a very striking figure.

Abel noticed the interest Ella took in the band leader. “That’s Big Bear, the owner of this club.” Ella chuckled. He certainly fit his name.

A waitress had came to their table and asked for their orders. Abel ordered whiskey while Ella absentmindedly asked for a seltzer water. The angel noticed she was really enjoying the music and atmosphere. Ella had her elbows on the table as she leaned forward and rested her head on her hands. Her eyes were closed but her ears had swiveled forward so she could take in every note that drifted their way. It was the most relaxed he had seen her all night.

They both sat there, sipping their respective drinks as the band went from one set to another. Sometimes the music was incredibly fast and other times it was very slow. Sometimes it even sounded like the band members were talking to each other through their instruments. It was all quite enjoyable.

Big Bear came to the part of the evening where he asked if there were any brave souls in the audience that wanted to come onto the stage and sing a song with the band. Ella couldn’t help the smile that tugged at her lips as a few toons got up the courage to give it a try.

One in particular make the crowd chuckle. A duck got on stage a requested a song to serenade his wife. Everyone had a hard time figuring out exactly what it was he was trying to sing because of his garbled voice but his significant other loved it. At the end, everyone clapped for the romantic mallard.

“Alright guys and dolls, this will be the last song request of the evening. Is there anyone else out there that would like to give it a try?” the audience grew quiet. “C’mon, no need to be scared. We're all friends here in Big Bear's house.”

Ella looked around. No one took the bear's offer. She stared at the stage. Ella always wanted to try her hand at singing but the opportunity never came up. All she ever did was bumble around and cause a mess in her films just so she could make others laugh. But…there was more to her than that. At least she thought so. Maybe tonight was her night to prove that to herself. The hippo took a deep breath. She pushed her chair back, stood up, and made her way to the stage.

Abel watched as Ella headed for the stage. From the way she rubbed her hands together and the big, toothy grin on her face, she's really excited. The audience watched as the hippo walked up to Big Bear.

“Well hello there miss.” The bear reached out, took her hand, and helped Ella onto the stage. “So, what song would you like to sing tonight?” She leaned in close and whispered something in his ear. “Really? Huh, that's an interesting choice.” He said with a huge smile on his face. Big Bear handed Ella a microphone before turning towards his bandmates. He told them what they would be playing, then he sat down at the piano.

Abel sat back and took another sip of his whiskey. He was curious to hear what kind of song Ella chose. Probably something upbeat and bubbly like herself. Big Bear looked towards her to see if she was ready. She nodded and within a few seconds the music started to play.

The angel blinked. The music wasn’t what he expected. It wasn’t upbeat at all. In fact, it started out quite slow. It had a somewhat lazy vibe to it. Abel though it was an odd choice for Ella until…she started to sing-

 _I put a spell on you._  
_‘Cause you're mine._  
_You better stop the things you do._  
_I ain’t lyin'._  
_No, I ain’t lyin'._

To say that the toon angel was surprised, was an understatement. Ella had a deep voice, but Abel wasn't expecting it to sound so sultry. Her voice was also smooth and a little haughty. She rocked her hips to the rhythm of the music until she came to lean against Big Bear's piano.

 _You know I can’t stand it!_  
_Your're running’ around._  
_You know better daddy!_  
_I can't stand it,_  
_Cause you put me down._  
_Yeah, yeah._

The room was completely quiet. Abel could see various heads bobbing to the music in the dim candlelight. Fingers and claws tapping the tables softly to the drum beat. Ella's voice was full of emotion and that was something you couldn’t fake. Sounds like the big gal had been through quite a bit in her life.

 _I put a spell on you,_  
_Because you're Mine!_  
_You're mine!_

Abel was impressed and from the look Big Bear kept giving her, he was too. He would rock from side to side as his claws glide across the ivories but every once and awhile he would look up at Ella with the biggest grin the angel had ever seen.

The toon angel sat back and finished off his whiskey before sticking his cigar between his teeth. He closed his eyes and let the music and Ella's voice drift over him like a warm summer breeze. This, in his humble opinion, was much better than being stuck in that stuffy Stork's Club.

Soon the song started to wrap up and when Ella hit the last note, the audience erupted in applause. She looked so happy. She pressed her hands together, bowed, and thanked everyone. Big Bear thanked her, took her by the hand, and helped her down the stage. Abel's eyes narrowed as the bear's grip on her hand lingered just a bit too long.

As she made her way back to their table, other toons complimented on her voice or thanked her for her lovely performance. By the time she reached him, she had her hands pressed against her cheeks and she had a huge, toothy grin on her face. If the lights weren’t so dim, he bet he could see her blushing like mad.

“Heh, good job darlin’.” Ella giggled and sat down. She took a big gulp of her seltzer and took a few deep breaths.

“Oh wow, I can’t believe I did it! I've always wanted to sing in front of a crowd!” she looked a little sheepish as she scratched behind her ear. “I just never got the chance, plus…I wasn’t sure if I was good enough.”

Abel was surprised at the moment of self doubt she was displaying. “Well, from the way the audience reacted, you had nothin’ to worry about.”

Before Ella could respond, a waitress walked up to their table. She placed a glass of red wine in front of Ella. Ella looked confused because she didn’t remember ordering it. The waitress must have read her mind because she said, “It’s from the gentleman at the bar,” before walking away.

Ella and Abel looked towards the bar only to see Big Bear leaning against it. He had an identical glass of wine in his hand. He lifted the glass slightly and gave Ella a playful wink. The angel sighed and shook his head. Ella smiled and returned the gesture, then toon a small sip from her own glass.

She really didn’t like to drink too much because she tended to get loopy and her clumsiness would get even worse. The last thing Ella wanted was to nearly trash the place with her bumbling. She took a few more sips of the wine, but didn’t finish the whole glass.

After the band played a few more sets, Big Bear announced that they were getting close to closing time. He thanked his patrons for joining him that evening and he hoped to see them all again. All the toon started getting up and filing out of the nightclub. Abel started to lead Ella out when Big Bear stopped them.

“Hey there beautiful.” Abel narrowed his eyes slightly and Ella giggled. “Listen, you have a wonderful voice. I was blown away miss-“

“It’s Ella and thank you.” The bear took her hand and laid a soft kiss on the back of it. Ella chuckled nervously and felt another blush creep up her cheeks. Abel shook his head. He couldn’t believe he was seeing this.

“Well Ella-“ Big Bear rolled her name around on his tongue. “Thank you for gracing my establishment with your presence. You are welcome here anytime. I'd like to hear that lovely voice of yours again.” At this point, Ella could barely string two words together without babbling. The owner was really pouring on the charm. Abel cut in before the hippo was reduced to a bowl of jelly by the bear's compliments.

“Sorry Big Bear, but it's getting late. I need to escort her home.” Abel stepped in between the bear and the hippo and gently pushed Ella out the door with his wings. Big Bear just smiled and wished them both a Goodnight. Ella took a few deep breaths as they walked away.

“Thanks Abel! He got me so flustered! I-I'm not used to someone talking to me like that.”

“No problem Ella.” Abel figured that might have been the case.

Ella lead Abel to a block full of large four story apartments. He noticed how wide and tall the doorways were and figured this was where a lot of the larger toons lived. Ella's apartment building was an old brownstone with tall trees flanking the sides and large flower pots sitting on the steps. He walked her up to the door when she stopped and turned towards him.

“Thank you Abel.” A soft smile spread across her face. “Even though I kinda roped you into keeping me company-“ he shot her a glare that made her chuckle sheepishly. “I had a really nice time tonight. Big Bear's was more fun than that stuffy Stork's Club.”

Abel sighed. He should be angry, really he should. All he wanted was to drown in some scotch and stumble his way back home. Then he just had to be a nice guy and save this gal's life… But he wasn’t upset. The night turned out better than he thought. He certainly made out like a bandit with all the fat wallets he nicked.

“I'm glad ya had a good time darlin'. I figured you might like the jazz club a little more.” Ella nodded and tilted her head towards the sky. The sun was starting to rise! She didn’t realize they were out that long.

“Wow, sun's coming up. I better head in and see if I can get a few hours of sleep.” She grimaced slightly. “I just hope I don’t wreck anything at work because of lack of sleep.”

An image of Ella knocking things over with her big butt crossed the toon angel's mind and he snorted as he tried to smother his laughter. “You’ll be fine Ella. You have a G'night.” Abel started to make his way down the steps when Ella touched his shoulder.

“Wait Abel! I almost forgot-“ She reached into her cleavage and pulled out a wad of cash. “Here. This is for being my escort tonight.”

Abel looked at the cash in her hand. He reached for it, but instead of taking the money, he pushed her hand back. “That’s alright Ella. You keep that. Your company was payment enough.” No way he was telling her about the wallets he stole. He probably collected more money than what she was holding in her hand.

She looked genuinely shocked. Ella looked down at her hand, then back at Abel. She smiled softly and put her money back.

Abel began to get nervous when Ella leaned over him. He really didn’t want to get caught in another bone crushing hug. Instead, she placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “Thank you.  ” Ella backed up, turned, and opened the apartment door. She stepped inside and the door shut behind her with a click.

Abel was left standing on the steps in shock. Who knew that loud, clumsy hippo could be so…gentle. He shook his head. The entire night was just full of surprises. The angel stuffed his hands in his pockets and hopped down the steps.

“Well, time to head home and count my haul.” As he made his way down the street, he found himself humming the song Ella had sung that night. That left him smiling. Looks like the big gal left an impression on him.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the story that helped break my writer's block. Thank you Vampire for letting me bounce some ideas off of you!
> 
> This is the song Ella is singing: https://youtu.be/ua2k52n_Bvw She would sound like this when she sings.


End file.
